


Adoption

by Sinna



Series: A Crash Course in Parenting [1]
Category: Teen Titans (Comics)
Genre: AU, Adoption, Established Relationship, M/M, kid!Bart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-08
Updated: 2013-01-08
Packaged: 2017-11-24 03:11:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/629715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sinna/pseuds/Sinna
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tim and Kon are finally going to move in together, but they encounter a rather unexpected obstacle in the form of Bart Allen, a (technically) 5-year-old speedster from the future who needs a home.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Adoption

**Author's Note:**

> I’m planning at least four installments of this series. We’ll see how it works out. I think you can guess which comic panel inspired this.

“Don’t you ever miss the days when it was just us?” Kon asked. “You know, before the girls joined the team and we became Young Justice.”  
Tim smiled and tugged his boyfriend closer as they walked down the dim Gotham streets.  
“A team really needs more than two people though. And admit it, you love Cassie, and Cissie, and Anita, and-”  
“Yeah, I get it,” Kon sighed. “Look, remind me again why we’re doing this?”  
“Telling Bruce about us, you mean? Well, for one thing, I’m pretty sure he knows already. Besides, you need his permission to move to Gotham, or he might end up roasting you alive.”  
“And what’s he going to do when he finds out we’ve been dating for two years and haven’t told him? He’ll kill me, won’t he?”  
Tim laughed.  
“He won’t kill you,” he promised. “He might maim you, a little.”  
Kon raised his eyebrows.   
“And that’s supposed to make me feel better?”  
“Not really,” Tim admitted.  
He squeezed Kon’s hand and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.  
“Relax. Everything’s going to be fine.”  
Kon smiled.  
“If you say so.”  
He still looked nervous though.  
“You know,” Tim ventured. “I wouldn’t object to flying the rest of the way.”  
Kon’s face lit up and he was up in the air seconds later, pulling Tim along with his tactile telekinesis. The feeling of being supported by a thin layer of nothing was still a bit disconcerting, but it felt a little like home.   
Wayne Manor came into view minutes later, and Kon was smart enough to put them down two blocks away. No doubt at least one camera had caught their flight – probably five – but points for effort.   
Since they weren’t in costume, Tim led Kon straight up to the front door. Alfred had it open before either of them had time to ring the doorbell.  
“Ah, Young Master Timothy, Mister Kent. May I take your coats?”  
Tim pulled off his winter gear, and Kon shrugged out of the light jacket he wore on exceptionally cold days. Alfred took everything without a word, casting a reproachful glance at their feet. Both hurried to stomp the snow off onto the matt before stepping inside.  
“It appears there’s a bit of a situation,” Alfred told them.   
Tim tensed.  
“What kind of situation?” Kon asked.  
“Mister West dropped by,” Alfred explained. “He and Master Bruce have been in the library for the past several hours.”  
“I don’t like the sound of that,” Tim muttered.   
“Master Dick is in the living room with Mrs. Allen. He might be able to tell you more,” Alfred said.  
Tim had no doubt that Alfred was quite aware of the situation, but if he thought Tim should talk to Dick about it, then Tim would talk to Dick. And… Mrs. Allen, whoever that might be. The first person to come to mind when the Flash was involved was Iris Allen, but she was dead, right?   
He made his way to the living room, his boyfriend following closely.  
“Do you have any idea what’s happening?” Kon whispered.   
“None,” Tim admitted.  
“Any theories?”  
“I don’t have anything to go on.”  
Kon grabbed Tim’s wrist, stopping him in the middle of the hall and turning to face him.  
“Bullshit. Your eyebrows did that little suspicious thing when Alfred mentioned ‘Mrs. Allen.’ You know who she is.”  
Tim sighed.  
“Barry Allen was The Flash before Wally. His wife was Wally’s Aunt Iris. She died a while ago, but if she’s back somehow, that would definitely explain why Wally’s involved, though I don’t see why he came to Bruce.”  
He tugged his wrist free of Kon’s grip and continued towards the living room.  
“But I don’t see why-” Kon began.  
“Shhh!!” Dick hissed, peeking out of the living room. “If you wake him up, I’ll kill you.”  
“Who?” Tim asked.  
Dick put a finger to his lips. Then, he motioned for them to enter the room.  
It was definitely Iris Allen, sitting on the sofa. But Tim couldn’t identify the child using her lap as a pillow. He must be from some sort of superhero family, given the red and white costume, although who would allow a kid that young to fight?  
“Dick, what is this?” Tim whispered, dragging his brother off to the farthest corner of the room.   
“Barry Allen’s grandson from the future, apparently,” Dick replied, his voice barely audible. “All I know for sure is that he’s completely out of control.”  
“Out of control?” Tim repeated. “How so?”  
Crazy children were the worst. What kind of power did this kid have?  
“He never stops moving,” Dick explained. “And he just wants to play videogames and he’s always complaining about everything being too slow and it’s exhausting.”  
“So, like a normal kid?” Kon remarked, coming over to join them.  
“If a normal kid had superspeed,” Dick clarified.  
Oh. That was quite a problem. Speedsters were, quite frankly, the hardest people to deal with. So were children. Put that together, and you really had a recipe for no sleep. Ever.  
“He’s kinda cute,” Kon observed with a smitten grin, and wasn’t that just terrifying?   
“Why are they here?” Tim wondered. “What does Wally need Bruce’s help for? Hopefully not parenting advice.”  
“He wants Bruce to find someone to take the kid.”  
“Why can’t Wally deal with him?” Kon said.  
“Would you want to?” Dick asked. “A five year old speedster?”  
“Still, it’s his responsibility,” Tim pointed out.  
Dick rolled his eyes.   
“Wally and responsibility don’t go well together,” Dick remarked. “Apparently, he tried to dump the kid on Max Mercury, but he refused to take him.”  
“Wise choice, if you ask me,” Tim said.  
“Wally trying to dump him on Max, or Max refusing to take him?”  
Tim thought about it for a second.  
“Both.”  
“Whatareyouguystalkingaboutisitmeareyoutalkingaboutmewhatisit?!”  
The subject of their discussion appeared in between them near-instantaneously, his light brown hair bouncing. Amber eyes stared up adoringly at Tim, and he could feel himself melting a little bit.  
“Who’re you?” the kid asked.  
“I’m Tim.”  
“And I’m Conner, or Kon for short,” Kon added.  
The five year old glanced over them.  
“Tim. Kon. Got it.”  
He made as if to run off, but Kon caught him by the arm.  
“What are you doing?! WHY CAN’T I MOVE?!”  
Kon lifted the child into his arms.  
“Hey, it’s okay. It’s just my Tactile Telekinesis. I can control anything I touch. Now, I’m not letting you run off until you tell me your name.”  
“Tactile telekinesis?” the boy repeated slowly, eyes wide. “How do you do that?”  
Kon beamed, and Tim rolled his eyes.   
“I’m Superman’s clone! I can do all kinds of cool stuff!”  
“Superman’s clone!?! Nu-uh!! You don’t look like him.”  
Kon winced a little and Tim moved a step closer, resting a hand on Kon’s shoulder.  
“Well, I’ve got some human DNA, too,” Kon admitted.  
“Like in Clone Wars Three?!”   
Tim and Kon shared a glance.  
“What’s that?” Kon asked.  
“It’s a videogame, I believe,” Iris told them, coming over to join the group. “He’s been playing his way through Wally’s collection. No one can really stop him, and it keeps him under control, so we’ve been letting him get away with it.”  
“All of Wally’s games?” Dick asked, frowning.  
“Wally was careful to keep him away from the more…adult of them,” Iris assured him quietly.  
“He says I can’t play them until I’m older,” the boy pouted. “Why can’t I, Grandma Iris?”  
“Because there are some things a child your age should not see,” Iris told him.  
He rolled his eyes.  
“Hey, kid, you still haven’t told us your name,” Kon pointed out.  
“Bartholomew Henry Allen II,” he declared. “Call me Bart!”  
He paused.  
“Can you let go of me now?”  
Kon laughed.   
“I did promise, didn’t I?”  
Bart disappeared within seconds.  
“Did you just drop him?” Tim asked, frowning.  
“No! I had a pretty tight grip on him, even without the TTK. I don’t know how he got away.”  
“I can answer that,” Iris said. “He has a few abilities Wally lacks, including the ability to vibrate through solid matter. He probably just ran off to tell Wally about his new friends.”  
She sighed and took a seat in a nearby armchair.  
“I really wish Wally would keep him. Bart really looks up to him.”  
Dick moved to comfort her.  
“Honestly, Iris, I’m a little relieved. Wally’s my best friend, but he isn’t ready to be a parent.”  
“I suppose not.”  
Tim wandered across the room and took a seat on the sofa. It wasn’t long before he felt Kon sit down beside him.  
“Are we still going to do it?”Kon asked.  
“Of course,” Tim promised.   
He took Kon’s hand and squeezed it lightly.  
“It’ll be fine.”  
He rubbed circles on the back of Kon’s hand as he considered Iris Allen. She was supposed to be dead. She’d died years ago. Steph had faked her death once, but not for nearly so long.   
“Dude, just go ask her.”  
“I-”  
“Fine. I’ll do it.”  
“Kon! You can’t-”  
Kon shut his mouth with a short burst of TTK.  
“Hey! Mrs. Allen!”  
She stood up and approached them.  
“Please, just call me Iris.”  
“Um, okay.” Kon faltered slightly and Tim hoped- “Aren’t you supposed to be dead?”  
Or not. Luckily, Iris didn’t seem offended at Kon’s painfully direct approach.  
“I was, but it’s a little more complicated than that. You see, I was actually born in the 30th century and sent back to this time period. After I died, my parents managed to resurrect me in the future with a new body.” She smiled. “I got to spend a little more time with Barry before he died, and gave birth to our twin children. But they were killed shortly after Bart was born, and EarthGov took him for experimentation. I was only able to rescue him recently.”  
“So he’s been imprisoned by the government for five years?!” Kon asked.  
Tim leaned a little closer to his boyfriend. He could tell that Kon was thinking of Greta, and what had been done to her.   
Iris shook her head.  
“No. Bart was born with speed, but his entire metabolism was hyper-accelerated. Instead of trying to cure him, they just hooked him up to a virtual reality to keep up with him. If I hadn’t rescued him, he would have died within a few years. He looks five, and even acts it to some extent, but he’s not even two years old yet.”  
“Raised in a virtual reality?” Tim remarked.   
Well, that explained some things. God, the kid probably had absolutely no sense of danger. What a nightmare. Tim pitied whoever was eventually stuck with him.  
The door opened and Bruce walked in, followed closely by Wally, holding Bart.  
“You’re home early,” Bruce remarked. “You usually spend the whole weekend in Smallville.”  
“We had to talk to you.” Tim explained, approaching his adopted father. “Sorry we interrupted.”  
Bruce raised an eyebrow and looked over at Kon.  
“Are you two finally going to tell me about your relationship?”  
Kon turned bright red and looked at the floor.  
“You knew?”  
“Kon’s moving in with me,” Tim said.  
He didn’t make it a question.  
“He can’t operate in Gotham,” Bruce ordered.   
“I understand,” Kon said.   
“Good.”  
And that was that.   
Bruce turned back to Wally.   
“I can’t take him. I’m sorry.”  
Wally sighed.  
“I figured you wouldn’t. Just thought I’d ask.”  
“Tim, can I talk to you for a second?” Kon whispered.  
Tim nodded and let Kon drag him to the furthest corner of the room.  
“What is it?”  
“What if…what if we took him?”  
“Bart?”  
Kon nodded.  
“Are you insane?” Tim wondered. “He needs a speedster. He needs a mentor. At the very least, he needs someone who can keep up with him.”  
“I’m not as fast as a speedster, but I am still faster than a normal human. And I have my TTK. Besides, if any speedsters were willing to take him, Wally wouldn’t be here.”   
“What about Smallville? You won’t have time to get over there every time there’s a crisis.”  
“The only reason Smallville has any problems is because people are after me. I’ll move my operations somewhere closer and then I’ll be able to get out and back quickly. Maybe I’ll even retire for the first few months.”  
“You’d give up being Superboy for this kid?”  
Tim was taken aback. Kon loved the spotlight, and he loved saving people. To give all that up…? He must feel pretty strongly about this.  
“I feel like, I dunno, this is supposed to happen. I think we’re supposed to take him. I mean, it’s a pretty odd coincidence, don’t you think? The day we decide to move in together, Wally brings over a kid needing a home?”  
“What about the Titans?” Tim asked after a moment’s deliberation.  
Kon smiled, no doubt sensing how close he was to victory.  
“I bet Wally or Max Mercury would agree to take him on weekends if we take him the rest of the time. Then he could get speed force training.”  
What an idiot. What a brilliant idiot. But Kon was Tim’s idiot and Tim couldn’t say no.   
“Okay,” he agreed. “But only if we get confirmation that someone else can take him on the weekends.”  
Kon punched the air.  
“Yes!!”  
“...could try Diana,” Bruce was telling Wally as Tim and Kon approached the pair.  
“Wally,” Tim said. “Kon and I will take him.”  
Wally started.  
“What?!”  
“If you can find someone to look after him on weekends, we’ll take him.”  
Bart, who had been clinging to Wally, flung himself into Tim’s arms and wrapped a chokehold around Tim’s neck.  
“Can I?! Please?”  
Bruce cast a reproachful glance at Tim, but said nothing. With former and current Robins in the room, he was really in no position to oppose anyone taking in an unclaimed child.  
Wally seemed rather taken aback.  
“Well, uh, sure, I guess there’s no problem with that. I’ll take him on weekends if I have to, and I’m pretty sure Max Mercury would be willing to do that as well.”  
Bart’s arms tightened around Tim’s neck.  
“Really?!” he looked from Tim to Kon. “I can live with you?!”  
“As long as you make an effort to behave,” Tim teased lightly.  
Vibrating with excitement, Bart nodded.  
“Okay kid. Time to stop choking Tim,” Kon said.   
Within seconds, the pressure was gone from Tim’s neck, and Bart was clinging tightly to Kon.  
“This is gonna be the best!!” Bart declared.  
Tim wasn’t sure that he agreed with that, but he’d taken on this responsibility, for better or for worse, and he was going to see it through. Looking at Kon’s smile, he thought it might even be worth it.


End file.
